Roentgen's research took an unexpected turn on 8 November 1895 when, in order to observe the luminescence caused by cathode rays more clearly, Roentgen darkened his laboratory and enclosed his Crookes tube (without a Lenard window) within opaque black car(Details)

When he turned on the apparatus, he noticed that a screen covered with barium platinocyanide crystals, about a metre from the tube, began to glow.(Details)

This was a great surprise, as Roentgen knew that cathode rays could travel no more than a few centimetres in air.(Details)

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Roentgen's research also included work on elasticity, capillary action of fluids, specific heats of gases, conduction of heat in crystals, absorption of heat by gases, and piezoelectricity.